The Deal: Asia, Europe Stocks Mixed Following U.S. Shutdown

Asian and European equity markets largely hold their nerve Tuesday.

LONDON ( The Deal) -- Asian and European equity markets largely held their nerve Tuesday, Oct. 1, as the U.S. government closed certain non-essential services after the Republican-led House of Representatives failed to approve a budget for next year.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 gained 28.92, or 0.2%, to 14,484.72 after the country's closely watched Tankan quarterly index of business confidence showed sentiment among larger manufacturers had risen to a six-year high in September. The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also confirmed it would increase the country's sales tax from next April.

Chemicals maker Ube Industries. led the gainers, rising almost 6%. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng closed down 347.18, or 1.5%, at 22,859.86, reacting to disappointing September manufacturing data from China.

In Europe, eurozone jobs figures Tuesday showed an unchanged August joblessness rate of 12%, just below the median 12.1% estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. German figures earlier had showed a small but unexpected increase in the jobless rate in September to 6.9% from 6.8% in August, while the Markit Purchasing Managers' Index painted a divergent picture across different European economies but matched expectations across the eurozone as a whole.

The DAX by mid-morning was up 53.55, or 0.62%, at 8,647.95, with Commerzbank and Frankfurt exchange operator Deutsche Boerse leading the gainers.

In the U.K., the FTSE 100 slipped 8.4, or 0.13%, to 6,453.82. Volatile silver and gold producer Fresnillo declined 2.7%. The stock has lost about a quarter of its value in the past month. Unilever lost almost 4% after third-quarter sales growth slowed and on worries for the company's outlook in critical emerging markets.

The Markit Purchasing Managers' Index for the U.K. in September lagged forecasts but confirmed the country's manufacturing recovery is continuing.